Baby stolen during fellowship in Lira city

LIRA - Police in Lira City Central Division are investigating a case of child theft that occurred during a fellowship at Mayor’s Garden on October 11, 2025.

According to Patrick Okema, the North Kyoga Regional Police spokesperson, the victim, Gloria Atim, aged 32 and a resident of Starch Factory cell in Lira City East Division, left home for a prayer gathering at around 2:00pm.

While at the event, she handed her one-month-old baby, Job Opio, to an unfamiliar woman who volunteered to hold the child as she joined others in praising God.

However, when Atim returned, both the woman and her baby had disappeared.

Panic spread among the congregation as announcements were made over the public address system, but the child could not be found. The following day, Atim reported the matter at Lira Central Police Station.

Detectives immediately registered a case of child stealing, visited the scene, and recorded statements from witnesses. Efforts to trace the suspect are ongoing, with police planning to issue public appeals through local radio stations.

Police have urged anyone with information about the woman’s whereabouts to come forward. “We appeal to the public to help us find the suspect so that the baby can be safely reunited with the mother,” said Okema.

Jimmy Patrick Okema

Child-related offences

The 2024 Annual Crime Report shows that 4.3% of reported cases were child-related offences, with 9,408 cases involving children or juveniles as direct victims of crime in 2024, compared to 10,741 cases in 2023 — a 12.4% decrease.

By the end of 2024, out of all child-related offences reported to police, 862 cases were taken to court, 4,183 cases were not proceeded with, and 4,363 cases remained under inquiry.

Of those taken to court, 207 cases secured convictions, 97 cases were dismissed, 66 cases resulted in acquittals, while 492 cases were still pending.